Pre-Service Special Education Teachers’ Perceptions of Competence, Willingness of Working, and Challenges of Working with Respect to Subfields of Special Education

Year 2022, Issue: 47, 41 - 54, 03.01.2023

Ayşe Dilşad Yakut Savaş Akgül

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine pre-service special education teachers’ perceptions of
competence, willingness of working, and challenges of working with respect to subfields of special
education identified in the special education teacher training program in Turkey. A researchercreated
survey named “Perceptions of Competence, Willingness of Working and Challenges of
Working Survey” was used in this quantitative research. The sample of the study consists of 174
pre-service special education teachers in Istanbul, Turkey. The findings are as follows: (1) the subfields
that the pre-service teachers found themselves more competent were the same as the
subfields that they found themselves more willing; (2) the subfields that the pre-service teachers
found themselves less competent were the same as the subfields that they found themselves
less willing; (3) the subfields of hearing disability and gifted and talented were found in less category
in all three dimensions (less competent, less willing, and less challenging); (4) the subfields
of autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability were found in more categories in all three
dimensions (more competent, more willing, and more challenging). Regarding correlational analysis,
a positive relationship was explored among perceptions of competence and willingness of
working for all subfields of special education. Finally, mixed findings were obtained regarding the
association between perceptions of competence, willingness of working, and challenges of working
by gender. Results present comparative views about subfields of special education.

Keywords

Competence, challenges of working, pre-service teacher, special education, willingness of working

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